April Fools' Day-born Murali Vijay does not fool others'

Mumbai: Team India's Test opener Murali Vijay will turn 33 on Saturday. He was born on April 1, which is being celebrated as April Fools’ Day.

"He is ‘happy’ to be born on this day. One cannot have a choice to decide the date of birth," his father R Murali, speaking exclusively over his telephone from his residence in Chennai, said.

"My son has no habit of making others fool, but yes, his friends do make fun of him on this day," the father added.

"I very well remember once when few of his childhood friends had thrown a party on this day and they didn't turn up at the end.

"I also recall the happiest moment of his life when he won the best batsman award from his school on this day. At the age of nine, he was selected to play for Under-10 team in his Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan (PSBB) school and he was adjudged the best batsman of the tournament and the certificate was issued to him on this day (April 1). He was very happy on that day," added R Murali.

"Murali Vijay is jovial with his closest friends," his childhood coach G. Jayakumar says from Chennai.

"He is a reserved type of person and does not make friends easily but his jolly nature is well praised by his close friends," the coach added.

India's former captain Ajit Wadekar, England's David Gower and Vikram Solanki (born in Udaipur), and New Zealand's Stephen Flemming are few of the other noted international cricketers, who were also born on April Fools’ Day.